I'm totally with the guy that posted a few replies up. I've got about 40 hours into the game, and Ramza is level
23. It's the first time I've gone through this game (I have better things to do that beat the same 80-hour RPG
a million times, so I'm sorry if I'm a "newb"), so I'm learning a lot as I go.

First, in every other Final Fantasy, one character is pretty much reserved for a certain function (Aerus is a healer,
Irvine is a range expert, Vivi is a black mage, etc.). However, in Tactics, a characters job can be changed on
a dime, and I didn't realize this until recently. The result: I can only use my level 23 Ramza who is a master
Squire, Master Knight and sucky everything else.

Second, I came to the conclusion that leveling up was a waste of time because the monster battles level up with your
character. So, even if I had a weak character I wanted to level up, it was pointless because the game would never
get any easier. If the game never gets any easier, what's the point in leveling up? Recently, I discovered the
propositions in the bars you can send your weaker characters on so that they can go out and get leveled. Result:
I don't have a level 70 character like everyone else has.

Third, I don't have the chameleon robe or the bloodsword or anything else that I've heard suggested. I don't have
the bloodsword because the battle where you get it is pretty difficult, so I didn't have the resources to go around
trying to steal from random people (that, and I didn't have a strategy guide, which is the only way anyone could
know how to get the bloodsword).

Fourth, like I said, I didn't realize that you could change characters jobs on the fly without damaging their
skill at a certain job until recently, and I think that's the reason I can't change Ramza's job to a Lancer, and
I don't even have the option to change anyone's job to a summoner or ninja or whatever.

Fifth, the damn game makes you save before the fight, and I didn't make a backup because I didn't realize what was
going to happen when I went to Riovanes. If I had known it would be a 15-part battle where you couldn't stop
to do any leveling or shopping, I would have done it, but this is the situation I'm in now.

This is really stupid! I've really been on the fense about this game from the get-go, and I've teatered and
tottered on the like and hate sides, but I'm about to fall into the hate side. I'm so sick of hearing all this
talk about how, "The battle is difficult, but it's possible if you equip your chameleon robe and bloodsword, and
if you change your job to a level 500 lancer with all these abilities you'd better hope you have". I'm going to
keep plugging at it, but it is absolutely stupid that there isn't an option to just leave the castle, do some
shopping, do some leveling and come back in. If, by doing this option, you had to go back to the beginning of the
castle, that'd be fine. But, I feel like now I'm at a situation where it's impossible to finish the game. This
was piss-poor design on the parts of Squaresoft, and I'm HIGHLY disappointed.

My "thing" is to play games and write reviews about them on Myspace. I have about a hundred games lined up, and
that happens every time I play an RPG because they take 2 months to finish. After I finish them, (because I have a
life) I have to read smart-ass comments on message boards about "Oh, I can't believe it took you that long! I can
finish Final Fantasy VII in 10 minutes!" Which, even if that was possible, I don't give a crap! It took me 45
hours! If you think that was too long, you can kiss my butt!

At any rate, now that I've got it out of my system, I'm still gonna try to beat this guy (and after I do, I'm gonna
jump up and down and wave my finger at the monitor (I'm playing on an emulator) and verbally put him in his place.

So, here's my strategy:
The best way I've found so far is to change Ramza (I keep wanting to call him Zidane for some reason) to a chemist.
It gives him less HP, but he has enough chemist skill to cast Hi-Potion, and he has a Mythril so I can get a
good range shot on him. I also set Ramza's secondary skill to Time Mage, to which he can only use Haste. The enemy
always casts the lightning shot first, so I pretty much have to start the battle down 140 HP (which is also bull
sh*t). However, when it becomes my turn, I can cast Haste immediately, and I'll get a second turn. With these 2
turns, I can cast one Hi-Potion and get far enough away to where he can't attack me on his next turn. From there,
I've been working on the right combination of staying away, popping him with my Mythril Gun and keeping myself
hasted to the point where I can defeat him.

I've also found that if I change Ramza to a black mage, he can get some decent damage with lightning 3. The problem
with this is finding a turn where you could cast the spell immediately.

Here's the situation, however. I need to have a range attack, a hasting tool and a healing tool, but I can only
have 2 of them (unless I wanna use Ramza as a Squire and Throw Stones, but please!). I've used the Squire technique
a few times, but like my boy said a few posts ago, you can only caste 'Yell' a few times before the enemy catches up
and squashes you. Just like bug!

Does anyone have any suggestions? I will not be restarting this game, so if it's a lost cause, I will not be
completing Final Fantasy Tactics.